


cat on the mat / kept as a pet

by Caracalliope



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Adora Remains with the Horde (She-Ra), Collars, Consent Issues, Devotion, F/F, Public Humiliation, Sexual Slavery, Threats of Rape/Non-Con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-02-15
Packaged: 2019-10-28 22:01:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17795534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caracalliope/pseuds/Caracalliope
Summary: After a failed mission, Catra gets demoted into sexual service.





	cat on the mat / kept as a pet

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Measured_Words](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Measured_Words/gifts).



> I have no idea where my line breaks went in editing! I swear they were there when I proofread. Sorry if you read the version without them!

Lord Hordak assembled all the Force Captains, but the lieutenants weren’t allowed in. There was a ceremony, with long speeches that took all of Adora’s attention. She didn’t notice the princess being dragged in front of Hordak, not at first.

It was the princess who always smiled, and who had used vines to strangle two of Adora’s cadets. She wasn’t smiling now. Her sulky collaborator, the one from the sea, kept yelling at Hordak, trying to get him to take her instead. Lord Hordak was amused, Adora thought, with the discomfort she always felt during necessary displays of power.

The flowery princess was brought to her knees, and one of Hordak’s bodyguards snapped the collar around her neck. There was silence for a moment, and then Hordak pressed a button on his bracelet, and the grand hall filled with the princess’s screams.

Hordak summoned Scorpia then, and she made her way through the crowd, muttering apologies even though she wasn’t bumping into anybody. Adora liked her, as much as she liked anyone outside of her own team, and she liked her even better for the hesitation she showed as she turned to the princess. But disobeying Hordak wasn’t a option for anyone. Scorpia stood still when Lord Hordak slipped the bracelet on her wrist. She obeyed when he told her to test it a second time.

Later, Adora would spot Scorpia in the hallways, from time to time. The blonde princess trailed behind her, like a bright and silent shadow.

Adora didn’t like it, and she hoped she would never have to use the collars herself. But, she did get that they were a weapon of war. Just one of many ways that the Horde fought back against the tyranny of magic. If they wanted to win against that kind of power, they had to resort to dirty tricks. It was just like Catra always said - fair play was for losers and princesses.

* * *

At this moment, Adora’s mission was to drag Catra out of Shadow Weaver’s line of sight.

If Catra lunged _now_ , Adora wouldn’t be able to protect her.

She maintained her neutral face and stepped in front of Catra, who was standing absolutely still. Catra’s skin was cold, beneath the fur. She almost looked like she did under Shadow Weaver’s torture, but without that sick glow.

“Please,” Adora said, though she knew Shadow Weaver could hear it. “Let’s just leave now.”

Catra’s shoulders grew tauter under her grip, but Adora was able to steer her forward. Shadow Weaver’s gaze was locked on them the whole time.

They got to Adora’s room in silence, and then Catra wrenched away and curled up on the bunk. She slept here half the time anyway. Said it was her prerogative as Adora’s lieutenant.

Adora stayed on her feet. Maybe Catra would need to attack _her_ , to let off some steam. Later, when they were in a safe place. Catra was hissing like a kettle for now.

If it were up to Adora, they’d start packing right away. But she had to be patient, because Catra needed time to freak out. One of them needed to be the calm one.

Still, she couldn’t help pacing around the room. Punching a wall would help, or the desk, or the bed frame.

“Your _bunkwarmer_ ,” Catra spat out, eventually. “Who does she think I am? Does she really think I’ll stand for this?”

Adora had seen the collars in action. Catra wasn’t going to have any choice, and she wasn’t going to stand.

“Do you think she really got Lord Hordak’s permission to fuck me over?” Catra’s voice was raspy, as though she’d spent a lot of time screaming, even though she hadn’t. She kept looking around, like there was a secret passage she could disappear to.

“Yeah,” Adora admitted. “I mean, she wouldn’t lie about that.”

“Adora, they can’t do this. Right? I know I screwed up and ruined the mission. But I’m still the lieutenant, and they know I’m useful on the battlefield - she _knows_ I can be more useful than you - and they’re going to, to waste me on serving you and fucking you and -”

Adora kept her hands behind her back, and they were curled into fists. She was such a bad liar, so she couldn’t tell Catra it was going to be okay.

“We’ve got until tomorrow,” she said instead. “We can run. We’ve got to. Can we just run?”

Finally, Catra looked at her. Her gaze looked tired, and cold.

“Don’t be stupid,” she said. “You know she’s having us watched right now. She wants an excuse.”

“Excuse?”

“To make me _her_ bunkwarmer instead of yours.”

Denial rose to Adora's lips, automatic. _She's not so bad. You're being paranoid! Stop treating her like she hates you._ It was a habit by now. It was helpful.

Maybe she wasn't that bad a liar.

She didn't say anything but sat down on their shared bunk. Catra curled up tighter, facing away from her.

* * *

Lord Hordak wasn’t there for the collaring. Why would he be? Catra wasn’t that important.

Adora’s squad was there, though. They didn’t look happy about it, or maybe they just didn’t dare show it.

Shadow Weaver was pleased, and that wasn’t exactly a surprise. Catra was silent, weaponless. Only her tail showed how she was feeling.

If they had to, they might be able to fight their way out of this room. If that was what Catra wanted.

This collar looked slimmer than the one Adora had seen Hordak use. There was a glaring little red light on the side. There were no speeches here, because everyone knew what was happening.

“You may proceed, Adora,” said Shadow Weaver, with an impatient indulgence.

Adora closed the collar around Catra’s slender neck. It was completely smooth, like it was never opened at all. The little light turned to green. The bracelet on Adora’s wrist was made from the same dark metal.

“I’ll test it in our rooms,” Adora said loudly. There was no use pretending she was going to go along with all this the way Shadow Weaver wanted her to. “In private.”

She could feel the tension rising from her team - Kyle made some sort of sound. But Shadow Weaver inclined her head.

“She’s yours to deal with now,” she said. “I trust you’ll keep her under control, Captain Adora.” The threat was obvious and cloying.

“Sure!” Adora said, and smiled.

“One more thing.” Shadow Weaver’s voice got gentler, and Adora’s mouth went dry. “We can’t allow a bunkwarmer to wear a uniform, can we? It would raise all kinds of uncomfortable questions.”

“Sure,” Adora said, again. Catra looked up at her, full of coiled rage. “Please take your jacket off, Catra.”

A few tense moments, like the final beats before a battle. Catra looked down, and shrugged the jacket off. Let it land at their feet.

“Tell her to take everything off,” Shadow Weaver said.

“It’s really not necessary,” Adora said, in the bright voice that sometimes worked on Shadow Weaver. “She can keep her clothes until I find her something better, the assignment was just so sudden -”

Shadow Weaver beckoned her closer, and she obeyed. Felt the chill when Shadow Weaver gripped her shoulders.

“I’ll only say this once,” Shadow Weaver. The gunpowder smell of her shadows was impossible to ignore. “Lord Hordak understands that I don’t approve of this assignment. If I see Catra manipulating you, I have permission to confiscate her. I’m not letting you jeopardize your future for _this_.”

She wasn’t quiet enough. Catra heard every word. So did a few of the people in Adora’s team.

“You don’t have to worry about that”, Adora said. Her voice was louder, pitched to casual. “I just don’t want anyone's eyes on my bunkwarmer. That’s all.”

Shadow Weaver laughed. It felt like a spell, a foul one.

“Nonetheless, Adora. Those clothes belong to me. Is this really something you want to fight me over?”

It wasn’t, not if she could delay a worse torture. She would do this herself though. She stepped up to Catra, grabbed the hem of her sleeveless white shirt. No resistance, no words at all. Adora wanted to cover up her chest, but drawing attention to it would be even worse. She brushed Catra’s hair forward, hoping that would help.

The pants came away easily, and Adora’s hands rested on those skinny hips for a moment. Delays in battle could be fatal, so she plunged on, and grabbed the elastic of Catra’s grey boxers.

“Don’t,” Catra breathed.

Okay. Adora pulled the elastic further up, and then lifted Catra up into her arms, like you’d lift a fallen ally. She was lighter than she had expected.

“What are you doing, Captain Adora?” Amused, Shadow Weaver sounded amused. Adora’s team made some sounds at last, and those could have meant amusement too.

“Taking her out for a test run.” Adora kept her grin wide. “Anything else I owe you, I’ll bring back tomorrow.”

Someone cheered softly, and she wasn’t sure if it was meant to be helpful or mocking. Whatever. It created the atmosphere she wanted.

There was something Catra once told her about Shadow Weaver. She was smart enough to adapt to the room, even though she was powerful enough that she didn’t have to.

“Fine,” Shadow Weaver said. “You have the rest of the day off. Please don’t wear yourself out, I expect you in the training room tomorrow at six.”

“I’ll be there!”

The retreat was fast, and Adora kept her head down. She was relieved to see that Catra had closed her eyes.

“Sorry,” she said, as soon as they were in the hallway. “I’m so sorry. Do you want my jacket?”

“Shut the fuck up, Adora. Keep carrying me.”

Adora obeyed.

* * *

Scorpia found her in the cafeteria, sitting alone. She planned to always sit alone now.

“Hey!” Scorpia sounded anxious and friendly at the same time. “I heard what happened with your lieutenant. Wild, huh?”

“Yeah. Wild.”

Adora could probably get away with a fistfight in the cafeteria. Four days had passed since the collaring. Shadow Weaver’s shadows weren’t trailing her anymore, were they?

“Sooo, I was thinking!” Scorpia twirled her fork. “I can probably get. You know. Real clothes? For your new bunkwarmer. Ones that are definitely not Horde property.”

Adora looked up at her at last.

“Really?”

“Yeah? Yeah! I’m totally a rich girl with seamstresses. Please don’t tell anyone!”

“Okay,” Adora said. “Okay.”

“So what does she like?”

“Right now? Something simple. Like not like -” she gestured at Scorpia’s cleavage, which she appreciated usually. “The opposite of anything that is, uh, sexy.”

Scorpia blinked, and Adora regretted saying that much. She had to be careful. Keep her distance from everyone who could hurt them. Until Catra figured out a plan to get away, Adora had to keep attention away from her.

“I’ll figure it out,” Scorpia said. “I bet Perfuma will help - it’s going to be _so_ non-sexy, you just wait.”

“Thank you?”

“You bet! Can you just tell Catra - um, tell her good luck, I guess?”

“Thank you,” Adora said, again. She wasn’t sure what happened here, but it was good to know someone was on their side.

* * *

“So, when are you going to fuck me? Are you waiting for me to beg?”

The question came late at night, when Adora had almost drifted off.

“What?”

“Don’t be stupid. You know she’s got her shadows watching us. They talk to me, when you’re not here.”

Adora had heard whispers too, coming from the corners. She pretended it was just from exhaustion.

“I don’t know what you’re waiting for,” Catra said. “You want her to make us do it? You know she wants to watch.”

“She does not,” she said, tentative.

Catra crossed her arms. She refused to touch Adora’s bunk now, spent her time curled up against the wall.

Shadow Weaver didn’t want to see Adora naked. She - well, fuck.

“Okay,” Adora said. “I guess we have to.”

“So come on. Order me, get it over it.”

Okay. “Catra. Can you, uh, please come over here?”

Catra rolled her eyes, and that was a little bit encouraging. When she sat down, Adora hugged her hard.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered against Catra’s neck.

“Yeah, yeah. We’re all very sorry, it’s all very unfair. I deserve my lieutenancy back, you deserve to fuck someone you’re actually attracted to, life is hard and so is sex.”

Very softly, Adora snorted. She didn’t want to let go yet.

“I guess it could be worse,” Catra said. “If it was the other way around…”

She trailed off, pulled away. Ran a finger across her collar.

“Yeah?” Adora said. “What then?”

“Nothing. Forget I said anything.”

“Tell me,” Adora begged. Any guidance would be good, any sign of what Catra needed.

“Ugh, fine! If it was the other way around, I wouldn’t be all noble about it. I’d just - have you, I guess, and then I’d feel guilty or something, and eventually she’d have us both in collars because I’d just keep fucking up. So. Congratulations for being better than me at owning people.”

“Oh.”

Catra didn’t actually leave the bunk, so maybe that meant it was okay to touch her. Awkward as a kid, Adora reached over to pat her knee.

A tiny growl escaped Catra. She was wearing the stretchy pants Adora used for workouts, and the thin strap of Adora’s shirt kept slipping off her shoulder. She was prettier than ever, even with the rings around her eyes.

“I think that’s nice of you,” Adora said. “Taking initiative like that. Hypothetical Catra would be doing the right thing, keeping things normal.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Just, I guess - that’s how I always thought it was going to be? That you’d tell me what to do and then we’d sleep together.”

For the first time in days, Catra perked her ears.

“Because,” Adora said, with the relief of shedding a secret, “you’re just more experienced than I am. In matters pertaining to, uh, copulation.”

“ _Copulation._ ”

“So it’s got to be you, right? I mean, I’d just wait until we’re both fifty, or until we get killed in battle. When I don’t know what to do, I don’t do it. Until someone shows me how.”

Catra shook her head, disbelieving.

Adora’s cheeks burned with shame, but it was a lighter kind of shame than she’d been feeling for days. At least when Catra laughed at her, it would feel like business as usual, and then -

“Lie on your back, arms above your head,” Catra whispered, directly in her ear.

Warily, Adora tilted her head.

“I’m sorry,” Catra scoffed. “I thought you wanted me to show you what to do.”

“I - yeah.”

She stretched out on her back, lifted her arms. She was good at following directions, sometimes.

“Hm,” Catra said. “Give me an order, now.”

“Please show me what to do next? What to touch, or, or not to touch.”

Catra smiled, her tiny fangs flashing in the dim light of their room. Adora closed her eyes, to block out the shadows, and forget about the collar. This wasn’t supposed to be nice, especially not for her. But with Catra talking to her at last, it was too easy to pretend everything was okay.

“I’ll do the touching,” Catra told her. “All you’ve got to worry about is staying _warm_.”

A steady weight settled across her abdomen, and Adora felt the front of her nightshirt get torn away. Her skin stayed unscratched.

Catra split her sleeves to shreds, freeing her arms. Then, she tore into the pants as well. Would they get into trouble? Was it up to Catra to decide if the risk was worth it?

“On your side,” Catra said, and then rolled her into place.

Adora maintained position, skin tense and shoulders aching. But Catra just curled up in front of her, brushing against her breasts and settling down with her forehead pressed against Adora’s shoulder.

“What now?” Adora prodded.

“Now you just keep not touching me, and I’m going to take a nap.”

“Okay.” When Catra left a dry kiss above her collarbones, Adora nearly broke form and touched Catra's hair. But no, she had to prove she could be trustworthy.

“If you were mine, I’d do it all at once,” Catra mused. “Take your virtue, I mean. But you’re not, so I need to be careful. Take things slow. Can’t have you getting all biased and manipulated.”

“Ha,” Adora said. “Haha, yeah, imagine if I was just totally willing to do everything you said.”

A kiss on her throat, with a scrape of fangs. She kept her breathing even, concentrated on keeping her arms above her head. If there were shadows here, watching, she would deal with them tomorrow.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [flower in a vase / kept out of the garden](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20290642) by [HaroThar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HaroThar/pseuds/HaroThar)




End file.
